Good Morning MASTER CLASS!!! #25 Ombobon

This week’s SMA MASTERCLASS 2017, the 3rd year fresh members who will be coming to Tokyo in 2017, we start a three week Indonesia special with the man who never gave up on manga – Ombobon ☆
He is a man who gets his manga ideas just by looking at images on the internet!

Today, he taught us how to do the same 😉
Good Morning Ombobon!

INTERVIEW WITH Ombobon.

“I just wanted my manga to be read as a complete story.”

– Congratulations on becoming a Masterclass member. You must have partied really hard when you got the news

Thank you. It’s not a common thing for me to celebrate unless it’s for a really special occasion. When my family heard the news they just congratulated me. But, it was different for my friends. They immediately asked me to treat them food :v.

– About where you live. Anything the world should know about the place?

I live in Mataram, the capital city of Nusa Tenggara Barat (NTB), Indonesia. It’s a big city but, peaceful. It’s not too crowded even with people from many different background and cultures from Indonesia along with the original “Sasak” culture here. NTB is one of the most popular destinations for tourist in Indonesia too, especially Lombok Island. We got a lot of beautiful and exotic beaches, extra spicy foods, and of course a stunning view of Rinjani Mountain.

– Your workplace – Please show us! + Any additional place you visit for inspirations?

My work space is my room at home. I rarely go out to just look for inspiration because I mostly get inspiration on the internet, in books, movies, and even games. But, I do cycling everyday to maintain my mood and body :D.

You go cycling everyday!? Are there any places you really like going to?

I go cycling around my city, on a daily basis. But, my favorite cycling places are mostly outside Mataram, like Senggigi Beach, Malimbu, Batu Idung Hill, and Batu Layar Hill. And when I’m cycling with friends we like going to the Udayana area, Lingkar Street, and Langko Street.

– Any memorable events, in your manga creation career?

“Just finish this!!”

YES!! It was when I got my first award in SMA for “Paper Flower” (SMA4). Honestly, that was the first appreciation I got since I started drawing manga. Actually, when I was doing my entry and it was still about 60% in progress I decided to drop it. There were too many negative thoughts crossing my mind, such as “There’s no way you can finish it in time. Remember your failure with your first entry? There’s no way you can be rewarded. Look at those pros, you’re just wasting your time!!” But, 5 days later I re-read that unfinished manga and thought, “It’s such a shame if this story hanged like this.” So, I grabbed my tablet’s pen and continued drawing the manga with only one goal in my mind, “Just finish this!!” I even almost lost my interest in the award, I just wanted my manga to be read as a complete story. And LUCKY ME!! It got the Excellence Award!! It really surprised me. I think what wise people said out there is true, that there are always good outcomes when you finish what you started. But, once you quit, it’s your loss. It REALLY happened to me.

– Are there any artist who had effect on your manga style?

At the beginning of my journey in drawing manga I tried to imitate Masasahi Kishimoto-sensei’s drawing style since I’m a fan of “Naruto.” But, when I started reading various mangas, my style changed quite often. Usually it depends on the latest manga I read. Like Takeshi Obata-sensei’s (“Death Note”) toning style, Mizuki Kawashita-sensei’s (“Ane Doki”) expressions and body gesture, and how Komi Naoshi-sensei (“Nisekoi”) draws eyes (well I adjust it a bit).

For storytelling I admire Urasawa Naoki. His works like “20th Century Boys” and “Monster” are my favorite. His stories are full of twists and conspiracies. Oh god I love that. Every time I read a chapter, he always succeeds in making me wonder, “Who the hell is this ‘friend’?” This is the kind of storytelling I love. It makes the readers curious.

– Any specific titles that influenced you? Maybe some movies, Dramas, or Games?

“Someday I should make this kind of a masterpiece in the form of manga!!”

Wow…there are a lot of them. But, I love Christopher Nolan’s works the most such as the “Batman Trilogy,” “Inception,” “Interstellar,” and “Prestige.” The level of depth of the stories he made plus the way he tells the stories through his directing always blows my mind. Every time I finish watching his movies, I say to my self, “Someday I should make this kind of a masterpiece in the form of manga!!”

Hayao Miyazaki’s works also influenced me in some aspects. My third SMA Entry, “Owl Express Delivery” (SMA5) was actually inspired by one of his works, “Kiki Delivery Service” but combined with one of my favorite movies “Harry Potter.”

– Wow, that’s cool that “Owl Express Delivery” was a mix of “Kiki’s Delivery Service” and “Harry Potter.” How did that idea come to you?

When I browsing a gag site called “9gag.” I was still in the brainstorming phase at that time, so when I kept scrolling through the pages I saw a picture of an owl showered in snow. Then it just popped up on my mind, “In the ‘Harry Potter’ movies, Harry uses owls to deliver messages. Hmm…maybe I can use this for my entry. It clicks with the audition’s theme.” But, I thought it would resemble “Harry Potter” to much, so I tried finding another idea to combine it with. And I remembered “Kiki’s Delivery Service.” Both titles have same atmosphere so I thought this will be a good combination ha ha.

– There must be some other works that inspired you as well?

Actually, I got the inspiration for my work “Paper Flower” (SMA4) from Ichirou’s “Homesick Alien” (SMA3) ha ha. His works really amaze me. The main concept that inspired me when I read that was, “How a simple gift like that can change a persons life.” The origami, it was just a random idea that came to me when I randomly googled for images ha ha. I saw an origami image and I though, “This will do,” just like that.

– Do you just google ideas with your stories and characters too?

“When I find something that clicks or helps connect those scenes in my mind, I’m just like, ‘Hmmm…this will do.’”

Well, it depends on the story and character. Usually I have these fragments of the base story or scenes in my mind, but don’t know how to connect them to make it a complete story. So, I just google randomly. Then when I find something that clicks or helps connect those scenes in my mind, I’m just like, “Hmmm…this will do.” It sounds funny but, search, something clicks, “that will do” ha ha. When the story is settled then I just randomly design the character without any initial idea of what it’s supposed to be. And when it’s done, I just like, “Hmm….this will do” again ha ha.

– We say “Breathing life into characters” is the magic of manga artists : Tell us how YOU cast that magic!

I think it’s all about emotions, actions, and the right placement/timing. Emotions and actions just make the characters look like they are moving. But, when both these elements are put in the right moment/scene, it will boost the mood. Even the simplest smile plus the right action when it put in the perfect moment will not only brings the moving effect to the characters, but also make it look like they are there!!! They are exist!!! They are…ALIVE!!!

“I think it’s all about emotions, actions and the right placement/timing.”

– Emotions, actions, and right placement/timing for the characters will make them ALIVE!! You’re not Doctor Frankenstein are you?

I really mean it, especially timing/right placement. When we know how to place the emotion and action perfectly, it will make the character interesting. “Perfectly” here means we must know how much emotion or action we should put into the characters and when the right time to put it is. Don’t make the character “out” from the characteristics itself, unless it’s really the part of the scenario.

– You must have done the combination of emotions, action, and placement/timing in your SMA entries?

Well, in practice it’s hard to explain how I do it. I think it’s just my instinct. For example, in “Owl Delivery” (SMA5) when I drew a chase scene I was just like, “In this scene this character will put on an angry face. But, I think I need to put a transition scene before that to boost up the mood.” That’s the way I do it. I just draw based with what I know. I did it the same for “Paper Flower” (SMA4), but with the emotion of wonder.

– Please say ONE THING about “Manga NAME (DRAFT STORYBOARD)”

I think it’s a must, but not absolute. “Not absolute” here means that the final result of the manga is not necessary to follow the whole storyboard, because sometimes the idea will change.

I change the NAME very often actually ha ha. There are many reasons for it, but the most common reason is “I CAN’T DRAW IT!!” I’m not at the level to execute those brilliant storyboards to be the exact drawing/scene I want. So, I adjust the drawings by changing the scenes, character’s pose, camera angles, or even add or remove/change a page/panel as needed so long as it doesn’t change the story drastically.

– Any other good tips to share?

Don’t sit too much, it will hurt your back, XD. It happened to me when I pushed myself to work at the maximum effort in the hopes I could finish tight deadlines.

Keep your health in good condition so that you will keep creating good manga.

– Is there any moment you felt “Ah I’m glad I entered this competition”?

“I was finally able to accomplish a thing that I should have done long time ago, creating a complete and enjoyable manga.”

Yes! When I finished my first entry in SMA, “Mother Lap”. That was the first completed manga I’ve ever made. Before I joined this audition I always put my manga on hold. Every time I had idea for a manga story, I was always pumped up in the beginning and drew it with full passion. But, I would gradually lose interest in drawing the manga and then put them on hold like my other unfinished works. Most of them were stuck in the storyboard without any further execution. But, when I join this competition, I was finally able to accomplish a thing that I should have done long time ago, creating a complete and enjoyable manga. Plus all the awards I got from SMA. It boosted up my confidence to create something more. Thank you!!

– Can you tell us a bit about more about “Mother Lap”? It was your first completed work after all.

I think it was a good start for me. It was my first manga. When I knew that it didn’t get an award…well it was a bit sad. But, I immediately compared it to all the award winning entries and tried to figure out what was missing from my work and what made their manga interesting. I observed, learned, and applied it to my next entry and it worked ha ha. My first manga was my little step to something big. That’s the way I see it.

– Speaking of receiving SMA awards, how did you feel when you read Horie-san’s comments for “Mask” (SMA6). Did you tell anyone?

“Oh my god, that’s Horie san!! The CEO and LEGENDAY editor commented on my work!!….woohooo!!” Of course I felt overly proud about that ha ha. But, I didn’t tell anyone. I just kept it for myself :p

– How do you feel about joining the SMA MASTERCLASS?

“YES !!! I did it!” That was my first thought when I got the news. Being able to join the Masterclass was one of my 2016 resolutions. So it’s one big achievement for me. Also, it’s an honor for me to join the Masterclass. Meeting the masters and the editors will leave me with unforgettable experiences and lessons for sure. I hope we’ll keep in touch and share some new tips and stories.

“Being able to join the Masterclass was one of my 2016 resolutions.”

– Is there anything you can’t wait to lean as a Masterclass member?

“I have many stories to tell…”

There are a lot, like how to develop or create a character that fits to the story. Honestly, I don’t know much about characters. I even don’t know much about creating a manga, but I want to make it. I have many stories to tell, but it’s very rare for me to draw manga right now.

– You have a lot of manga in the NAME stage? Which ones do you want to work on with SMAC! Can you tell us a bit about them?

There’s one that was inspired by one of Christopher Nolan’s works, “Inception.” It’s called “The Owl Syndrome” right now, but I want to change the title soon…maybe “Dreamwalkers.” The premise is an ex-special force of dream manipulation is being hunted because he has “the key to all things.”

It’s a world where through dreams we can manipulate people, erase specific bad memories, or even create a fake good memories. But, to enter a person’s dream we need to have a “key.” Every person has their own unique “key” to protect their dreams. That’s why the main character in the story is being hunted, he has “the key to all things.” Because with that single key, every person’s dreams or conscious will be vulnerable to hack.

Interested? ha ha. I really want to publish this one.

– Finally, any last words for the readers?

I hope my manga will entertain you as much as the love I gave when I drew it. Thank you.

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